title: Genome-wide association studies in atherosclerosis.
abstract: Cardiovascular disease remains the major cause of worldwide morbidity and mortality. Its pathophysiology is complex and multifactorial. Because the phenotype of cardiovascular disease often shows a marked heritable pattern, it is likely that genetic factors play an important role. In recent years, large genome-wide association studies have been conducted to decipher the molecular mechanisms underlying this heritable and prevalent phenotype. The emphasis of this review is on the recently identified 17 susceptibility loci for coronary artery disease. Implications of their discovery for biology and clinical medicine are discussed. A description of the landscape of human genetics in the near future in the context of next-generation sequence technologies is provided at the conclusion of this review.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Medicine, Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sivapalaratnam
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Motazacker
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Maiwald
authors.forename: G K
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Hovingh
authors.forename: J J P
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Kastelein
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Levi
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Trip
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Dallinga-Thie
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D015870:Gene Expression; D056426:Genetic Loci; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D050356:Lipid Metabolism / Q000235:genetics; D010641:Phenotype; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide